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Written question asked by Lord Bradshaw (Liberal Democrat) on Tuesday, 16 May 2023, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 31 May 2023. It was answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Conservative) on Wednesday, 31 May 2023 on behalf of the Department for Transport.


Railways: Postal Services

Question

To ask His Majesty's Government how much is spent at present in subsidies for rail freight, including for the development of express parcel delivery traffic.

Answer

Domestic and international rail freight services are private operations run on a commercial basis. The Government provides some limited support in specific areas.

The Government incentivises modal shift from road to rail through the £20 million per year Mode Shift Revenue Support scheme.

The Government provided £2.155 million to rail freight projects through the First of a kind competition for cutting edge ideas to help transform the railway. These projects include rail freight express parcel delivery.

DfT also contributes to some of the Operations, Maintenance and Renewals Charges (OMRC) charges for international freight trains using the Channel Tunnel under the terms of the commercial agreements which established the Channel Tunnel. This amount is variable but is approximately £13m per year.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL7857
Session
2022-23
Subjects
Freight Railways Postal services Subsidies
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk